How to Freshen Your Pillows

Quality pillows are a necessity for a good night's sleep and proper care is important. The pillows you sleep on every day will need special attention more frequently. But even your spare pillows that are seldom used will need to be freshened occasionally. If you have a set of pillows for the guest's bedroom or an extra set for your own bed, often they'll smell stale and musty from storage. There are easy ways for you to freshen your pillows.

Always read the care instruction label on the pillows first. You might be surprised to find the easiest way to freshen them is in the washing machine. If the pillows are washable, follow the instructions for the pillow's material content. A front loading washer is best for washing all types of pillows. A top loading machine can be used but the agitation can be damaging to the pillows so use gentle cycle.

Down pillows are washable but be sure to dry down pillows in the dryer as well. Line drying will allow the feathers to stay wet for too long and cause mildew to form in the feathers. Special detergents are available that are made especially for washing down pillows or comforters. The next best thing is a detergent labeled "free" which indicates it doesn't have perfumes and additives. Liquid fabric softener or dryer sheets cannot be used with down pillows.

Most polyester and foam filled pillows can also be washed and dried in the dryer. Foam filled pillows can be tricky to wash because they absorb so much water inside the foam. Put them through an extra spin cycle in the washer if they still feel too wet inside. Dry them on the heat setting recommended on the care label.

If your pillows just need to be freshened and they aren't made of down, put them in the dryer with a fabric softener sheet. Heat from the dryer will also help to kill any dust mites that might be present. If the care label doesn't recommend drying with heat, then put the pillows in the dryer on "fluff" or "no heat" setting to freshen them with the softener sheet.

Always use objects in the dryer with pillows to fluff up the filling, whether they've been washed or just need to be freshened. You'll end up with the stuffing in lumps and unevenly placed in the pillow if you put them in the dryer alone. Clean canvas sneakers or tennis balls are good to use in the dryer with pillows. If you use tennis balls to fluff the pillows, two or three should be sufficient.

Fabric sprays are a quick and easy way to freshen pillows. They're available in a variety of fragrances and some even eliminate allergens from fabrics. When you do store the freshened pillows again, store them will dryer sheets, sachets or cedar balls. These will help keep the pillows smelling fresh while they're being stored again.

Buy pillow protectors for all of your bed pillows. This will help keep them clean and protected from body oils, dust and dead skin cells. A pillow protector is basically a pillow case with a zipper that will help keep the pillows sealed. These will give the pillow another layer of protection underneath the pillow cases so buy the best quality protectors you can afford.